Don Trollano continues to make his presence felt for the TNT KaTropa this 2019 PBA Governors’ Cup.
On Saturday, the 6-foot-3 swingman finished with 19 points on 61-percent shooting. He also picked up six rebounds, three assists, and two steals to help the Texters repel CJ Perez and the gritty Columbian Dyip, 125-120.
“We stay focused lang, kasi ‘di kami pwede matalo eh,” said Trollano. “Kailangan namin manalo hanggang sa makatapat ‘yung San Miguel group para maganda ‘yung chance namin sa playoffs.”
With the win, TNT are now at 4-0.
One of his performance highlights was his point-blank shot with 1:05 left to play, which gave TNT a 123-117 lead. He had created the shot all by himself since Columbian had all possible options well-defended.
In that sequence, Trollano was looking to hand it off to Jayson Castro but the latter was covered, so he took it upon himself. He made Andreas Cahilig dance with crossovers, then attacked the rim, stopped, and turned around for the one-hander.
“Wala na eh. Sabi ko ‘Akin na ‘to’. Inisip ko na ako na eh,” Trollano recalled.
“Wala na eh. Hindi nakuha nun [ni] Jayson. Yung play para sa kanya, eh nadepensahan siya [ng] mabuti. Nasa akin yung bola so ‘yun lang, wala na eh. Wala na ring oras.”
The whole KaTropa bench erupted in celebration after that move by Trollano, who had also shown some beautiful footwork during the whole game. “Lagi naman, kahit sa practice ganun sila,” said the Adamson product.
“Tinatawag nga nila akong Kobe eh. Pero supportive naman teammates ko.”
Trollano has been nothing but solid for TNT. And for the four-year pro, it was the 2019 PBA Commissioner’s Cup playoffs — where he battled Justin Brownlee as well as San Miguel Beermen — that brought his confidence up.
In those very same playoffs, the 27-year-old proved that he can be one of the KaTropa’s reliables.
“Feeling ko nakatulong sa ‘kin ‘yung previous conference — ‘yung semis,” said Trollano, who’s averaging 15.25 points, 6.0 rebounds, 2.75 assists, and 1.0 steals. “Competing against the best, like Justin Brownlee, then San Miguel.
“So nae-elevate yung game mo eh, ‘pag nakikipag-compete ka that way.”
